North Duplin senior Erik Rosas signed a national letter-of-intent to play baseball at the University of Mount Olive Monday afternoon. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
North Duplin’s Erik Rosas, middle, is surrounded by his teammates after he signed to play baseball at the University of Mount Olive Monday. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
North Duplin seniors Richard Noble, left, and Erik Rosas, right, helped guide the baseball team to 21 wins, a share of the Carolina 1A Conference regular-season title, the Carolina 1A tournament crown and a second-round appearance in the N.C. High School Athletic Association playoffs. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
North Duplin senior Richard Noble signs a national letter-of-intent to play baseball at Lenoir Community College next year. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
North Duplin’s Richard Noble, middle, signed to play baseball at Lenoir Community College on Monday afternoon. Standing behind Noble his dad, Kevin on the left and his mom, Shannon on the right. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
North Duplin senior Richard Noble, middle, is joined by his teammates after he signed to play baseball at Lenoir Community College on Monday afternoon. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
CALYPSO — Erik Rosas and Richard Noble helped rebuild a winning mentality on the baseball diamond at North Duplin.They’ll continue their respective careers at two tradition-rich collegiate programs.
Rosas is crossing the Duplin County line after he signed a national letter-of-intent with the University of Mount Olive. Noble is heading down south to Lenoir Community College in Kinston, which missed the JUCO D2 World Series by two games.
“It’s a good day for them and we’re excited about,” said second-year ND head coach Colton Chrisman. “They’re reaping the benefits of their hard work, not just here in high school. It started a long time ago for them to develop the love for baseball and put that extra effort in over time.
“They’ve reached their goal to play at the next level.”
Rosas wasn’t sure this day would come.
In fact, he didn’t think college baseball was in his future.
The UMO coaching staff contacted him last fall.
“It came as a shock,” Rosas said. “I remember I had just gotten home and was sitting in my truck when they called me. They said I was being given the opportunity to play and I couldn’t have been any more thankful.
“It’s a blessing come true.”
Noble anticipated reaching the next level.
An outspoken, aggressive and confident athlete when he competes, he appeared modest about joining the LCC program.
The Lancers (37-18) just completed a stellar campaign with a runner-up finish to St. Johns River State in the Division II South Atlantic Regional. According to their current online roster, they will lose 18 sophomores.
“I love to work and knew I could get better to get to this day,” said Noble, who transferred from Southern Wayne in the offseason. “I know I can play there [as a] two-way [starter] and it’s not far [from home]. They’ve got a pretty good coaching staff.
“I knew I wanted to go there.”
The duo helped guide North Duplin to back-to-back Carolina 1A regular-season and tournament titles for the first time in program history. The Rebels posted 21 wins and endured a season-ending loss to Falls Lake Academy.
Rosas, who wears his heart on his sleeve, kept opponents off balance with a three-pitch arsenal — fastball, curveball and newly-developed slider. He logged an 8-1 record on the bump and collected 117 strikeouts in 65-plus innings of work.
His career numbers look like this: 16-3 record, 1.40 ERA and 208 strikeouts in 134.7 innings. He earned all-Carolina 1A Conference honors this season.
“I do need to be able to command the ball more,” said Rosas, who plans to major in computer science and enter the IT field.
UMO emerged as the Conference Carolinas champ for the first time since 2017. The Trojans earned the automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional 1, which starts at North Greenville University on Thursday.
An all-Carolina 1A selection, Noble batted a crisp .397 with 31 hits, 24 RBI and 29 runs scored. The No. 2 hitter in the Rebels’ lineup, he swiped 16 stolen bases.
On the hill, Noble finished 5-0 with a 1.28 ERA. The right-hander filed 87 strikeouts in the scorebook over 54-plus innings and limited opposing teams to a .130 average.
“I love to win, pitch well and help the team when they need me,” said Noble, who hasn’t planned a course of study at LCC.
Chrisman said both players, who displayed strong leadership skills, will undoubtedly succeed at their next stop.
“They’re sponges, absorb every piece of information that we put out as a coaching staff to them,” Chrisman said. “They’re always looking to learn, and they retain that information well and put it into their play. They won’t be in leadership roles out of the gate when they get to college, but that will be something else that helps them along the way.
“I can’t express how thankful I am to have them to come through here and how much of a blessing it was to coach them.”
